Briefs

"We are pressing full steam ahead," proclaimed Bill Gates, the group's founder, chairman and chief software officer, at the company's annual analysts' meeting. "This may look counter-intuitive," he admits. "People may say, 'why aren't you cutting the R&D budget by 20 per cent?' But because we are optimistic about what software can do in the future, we are increasing our investment."

Rick Rashid, head of Microsoft research, says he is confident that the rate of technological innovation is not set to slow. "I am really excited about data mining, web services and the increases in storage capacity. Over the next two years you will be able to have a terabyte [1,000 gigabytes] of data on your personal computer. You won't have to throw anything out. You could store every conversation you ever have in your life, from birth to death. That opens up astonishing opportunities. You can create digital memories."

Here is full story from Financial Times.